


The Merry Go Round of Life

by lemonthea



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Howl's Moving Castle Fusion, First Meetings, Gen, Howl! Natsume, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Sophie! Tsumugi, eichi is the witch of the waste i'm so sorry, except somehow half of this ended up being about how tsumugi and mika became friends instead, i feel like that was obvious-, mika is technically lettie and shu is just. there, this is just that one scene where they walk on air but with natsumugi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 00:08:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29198160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lemonthea/pseuds/lemonthea
Summary: Howl's Moving Castle AU
Relationships: Aoba Tsumugi & Kagehira Mika, Aoba Tsumugi/Sakasaki Natsume
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	The Merry Go Round of Life

Tsumugi sighed as he attempted to rethread his needle for the third time. He really needed to invest in some better glasses soon; it was getting difficult to even see the finer details on the hats he was working on but he couldn’t help feeling attached to his current ones. Especially as new ones were likely to be expensive and he didn’t want to waste money.

Tsumugi had spent most of the morning working at the till, helping customers and taking custom orders until his mother had eventually taken over and asked him to work in the back room for a while instead.

His break was supposed to be soon and he was meant to be getting ready to go out soon to meet a friend but he’d wanted to figure out what to do with the hat he’d been working on first. It looked more than a little depressing, all dull gray fabric with no embellishments other than a half stitched ribbon around the rim in an equally dull faded blue. Frowning, Tsumugi placed it back onto the mannequin head. 

As a concept, the design had seemed fine, albeit maybe on the subtle side, and yet when he tried to make it a reality it had just seemed hopeless. He reached for his seam ripper but hesitated. It was getting close to the time he was supposed to leave at anyway; maybe it would be easier to figure out what to make of it when he came back to it in a few hours.

Before he walked out of the door, Tsumugi looked himself up and down in the mirror to ensure he was at least presentable. 

It wasn’t until he reached the main street that he realised that it was completely flooded with people. _Of course. May Day._ Although Tsumugi had been aware of it, he hadn’t really put two and two together and realised just how extravagant the celebration would be since he himself had no plans to participate.

He would just have to try and take a shortcut through an alley, then. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d tried to find his way through them, although he’d never tried to make it to the other end of town before. As he walked, Tsumugi focused so much on keeping track of where he was going that he almost walked straight into someone leaning against the wall.

“Hey, looks like someone got lost.” Tsumugi frowned. Before he could say anything, he noticed two other men blocking his path.

“Where are you headed?”

“Why don’t you stay and talk to us for a bit?”

Tsumugi froze. Nobody had ever spoken to him like that before. They sounded friendly enough, but the way they completely blocked off the exit suggested otherwise. He didn’t know how to react so he just bowed his head, smiling awkwardly as he tried to turn away.

“Sorry, I’m supposed to be meeting my friend and-” One of them grabbed his arm and the action sent a jolt of _something_ through his body.

“Aw, c’mon, don’t be running off just yet.” The man’s voice was lighthearted but laced with threat. At that moment, the danger of the situation suddenly hit Tsumugi. The alleyway was completely empty save for them and even if he shouted for help, nobody would hear over the celebration outside. He wasn’t strong enough to escape from just one of them, let alone three.

“Ah, there you Are. I’m sorry for taking so Long.” Tsumugi jolted at the sound of another voice. Another wave of panic washed over him as he realised that now there was someone behind him, completely sealing off any chance at an escape. The way they spoke was odd, placing emphasis towards the end of their sentences and making it difficult to figure out their tone.

“Who the hell are you?” One of the men responded, just causing the stranger to laugh. They stepped forward and Tsumugi finally got a good look at them.

The first thing he noticed about them was their hair. It was styled to be longer on one side and, if that wasn’t strange enough, a gray streak ran through it. And Tsumugi had seen his fair share of fancy and expensive clothing, but he’d never seen something made so intricately in such bright colours. It was like the stranger _wanted_ to stand out.

None of the men in the alleyway seemed to recognise them. _They must have been talking to him, then. Were they pretending to know him? Why would they bother?_

The man still gripping his arm released him with a start when the stranger threw an arm around Tsumugi’s shoulder. He looked to them in confusion and they met his eyes, barely reacting, as if to say “play along.” Although he wasn’t sure whether to trust them or not, Tsumugi didn’t make any attempt to move away: at least the stranger wasn’t an immediate threat. Besides, for some reason their arm around his shoulder had stopped him from shaking and he was at least grateful for that.

“I think you three were just about to Leave.” Before any of the men could say anything, the stranger swiped a finger lazily upwards and a thin line of red glitter followed it. In response, their bodies suddenly stiffened as they turned around and walked away.

“Wh-what? How did you-” 

“Where To? I’ll escort You.”

“Ah. Um. Just the boutique on the other side of town.” Tsumugi wasn’t completely sure why he went along with it but the stranger seemed safe enough and he was afraid to try leaving alone.

“Alright Then.” They had only been walking down the alleyway for a little while before the stranger leaned in to whisper in Tsumugi’s ear and a chill ran down his spine. “I’m being Followed. I’m sorry for getting you involved but it looks like I don’t have a Choice. Try to act Natural.” 

_How the hell was he supposed to act natural knowing that?_ Tsumugi didn’t dare to look behind him but he could hear heavy footsteps. He hoped that the echo of the small alleyway was the only reason it sounded like there were so many and so close to them. Soon, the stranger was picking up their pace and the two of them were breaking into a near run as the stranger continued to guide him through a path of alleyways so complicated Tsumugi would never have believed they existed. He could barely understand how he had ended up following someone he had barely met, who could be a fugitive for all he knew, like this from people who could potentially be dangerous and yet he couldn’t stop.

Despite how much ground Tsumugi had thought they had covered, the footsteps soon turned into strange black creatures that were close enough to see, right on their heels and blocking hopeful escape routes. It was inevitable that they would soon have either caught up or blocked off every possible entrance. Sure enough, it wasn’t long before they were surrounded.

And yet, even then, the stranger didn’t seem phased in the slightest. There was nowhere else to turn and Tsumugi couldn’t help the panic beginning to rise in his chest. He just let the stranger lead him, it was all he could do when stopping would mean they would be caught, and hoped the confidence they seemed to radiate wasn’t just for show.

And right at the last second, the stranger whipped around, grabbed Tsumugi by the hand and then-

A strange weightless feeling encompassed him. He squeezed his eyes shut, wondering if the strange feeling was some kind of hallucination his head had conjured up to distract him from the imminent pain. It wouldn’t be too bad a way to die, certainly not as bad as Tsumugi was sure he deserved. 

Tsumugi opened his eyes… and immediately closed them again. He was definitely hallucinating, there was no way that they were-

“You don’t have to look Away. Or have your eyes retreated back into their Sockets?”

Oh. _Oh._ Tsumugi almost screamed when he realised that, not only was there no ground beneath them, but they were somehow _moving_.

“How do I-”The stranger didn’t even look back at him as they smirked.

“It’s Easy. Just put one foot in front of the Other.” It was all Tsumugi could do to comply, awkwardly copying the other’s movements, hoping for the best and-

“There you Go. I knew you could do It.”

Oh God he was _flying_. Well. The stranger seemed to be the one who had caused it, but Tsumugi was still flying nonetheless. Below them, he could see people celebrating in the streets. At that moment, they seemed to be dancing, bright colours flashing past each other as they exchanged partners at the drop of a hat. If he looked hard enough, he would probably be able to see band members scattered about and playing their own instruments although they were just high enough that he couldn’t hear any music.

His attention turned to the stranger as they continued to guide him, both of their hands wrapped around his own. Despite himself, Tsumugi felt a blush creep up his neck. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t afraid of them -they’d just appeared completely out of nowhere and done things he’d never thought were possible- but he couldn’t think of a time before then that anybody had ever held him so close. Although he couldn’t understand what had just happened, he suddenly felt unbothered by it.

Eventually, Tsumugi realised they were beginning to drop lower until they made it to a balcony. The stranger helped him step down from the railing and smiled again, seeming somehow satisfied.

“Well, that's about the best I can Do. I’ll try to lead them Off, but you should be Safe, for Now.”

“F-for now?”

“I didn’t mean to get you involved like That, but I doubt anyone will bother to come looking for you Anyway.”

“Wh-what?” _What was that supposed to mean?_ The stranger still hadn’t explained why they had been running away or how they’d gotten those men to just leave like that or how they had been _flying_ yet. “Wait, who are you?” Without answering, the stranger simply pushed off of the balcony and allowed themselves to fall. Tsumugi gasped in shock and rushed to the edge of the balcony to see where the stranger had gone…

But they had disappeared.  


  


* * *

  


Tsumugi was met with a scowl as the man who had opened the door realised who he was.

“Kagehira-”

“Oshi-san, I told ya Tsumugi was coming today.”

“And _I’ve_ told _you_ not to waste time fraternising with competition, regardless of how inadequate.”

“Aww c’mon. S’not like Tsumugi makes clothes. And even if he did he wouldn’ try and steal one of yer designs. Ya know he wouldn’t do anythin’ like that.” Variations of this argument seemed to break out almost every time Tsumugi visited, although Mika insisted that Shu’s complaints were mostly for show and that Mika didn’t mind if it meant they could still meet up. Shu certainly did hold some level of disdain towards Tsumugi, although it seemed to be more aimed at his role of someday inheriting his mother’s hat shop than for his personality.

Well. That and maybe Tsumugi’s taste in fashion. The first time he had met Shu and Mika was when they had entered his hat shop to apparently scope out competition. It hadn’t been a very long interaction, Shu had stated that he would soon be opening a new boutique and wanted to be aware of anything that could in any way be competition. He had then criticised almost every hat in his line of sight until Mika had stepped in and awkwardly interrupted, introducing himself although Tsumugi had just laughed it off. It had been harsh but he had appreciated the honest critique.

A few weeks later, the hat shop had received a package clearly not intended for them. Tsumugi had unthinkingly opened it, only to find fabric there was no way they could have afforded. He asked his mother just in case and she confirmed that something must have gone wrong before asking for Tsumugi to deal with it. He didn’t really want to, far too awkward with confrontation, but he called the supplier anyway in hopes of being useful.

They hadn’t seemed to be too concerned, simply telling Tsumugi that he would have to pay extra for their delivery man to make another journey. It certainly wasn’t worth the cost and even if they just kept the materials, they wouldn’t be able to use them without running the risk of ruining them, so the only option Tsumugi had was to fix it himself. Hesitantly, he had asked which address theirs had been confused with. It was a boutique on the other side of town. The supplier warned him that they couldn’t guarantee that the boutique would give them back if they hadn’t already decided to use the materials, as Tsumugi had been the only one to contact them. Still, if there wasn’t an alternative then Tsumugi would have to try it. 

Attempting to transport a box half his size across town certainly hadn’t been easy and it had landed him a plethora of dirty looks, but he had managed.

Tsumugi hadn’t been sure of what to do when he reached the boutique, as he didn’t want to disturb customers but couldn’t think of another way to speak to the owner without leaving the box of expensive materials outside. He’d stood thinking about what to do for a short while before a man who had been fixing something in the shop window noticed him and came out.

“Do ya need help with that?”

Tsumugi quickly explained the situation as best as he could and the man interrupted partway through, saying he would go and find “Oshi-san”, because he would have a better idea of what to do.

“What exactly is the problem? I don’t have much time.” The other man was much harsher, seemingly not too bothered with the situation. Tsumugi explained again, this time awkwardly stammering his way through as he was glared at. Once he was finished, the man narrowed his eyes. Something about the way he did it seemed familiar.

“Yes, we should have ordered something like that. I suppose I’ll check to see if we received yours too, then.” He spoke as if Tsumugi’s very existence was a burden on his own. Before Tsumugi could ask what he had wanted him to do with the materials, he vanished back into the boutique.

Tsumugi felt uncomfortable just standing outside of a shop and waiting, but Mika seemed unfazed.

“Sorry if Oshi-san seemed kinda harsh, it’s nothin’ personal. He’s just a bit stressed out with the store and stuff right now.” Something about the way he apologised seemed familiar too. “Anyway, we-”

“Haven’t we met before?” Tsumugi blurted out. He hadn’t meant to but the realisation that he recognised Mika had been so sudden. He rarely forgot faces and it would have been near impossible to forget two-toned eyes like his.

“Huh? Have we?” Tsumugi awkwardly tried to explain their meeting at the hat shop without addressing Shu’s criticism.

“Oh. I don’t really remember t’ be honest with ya, we went to a couple other places too when we were startin’ out but that sounds about right.” Mika smiled brightly and extended a hand. “I’m Kagehira Mika. And that was Itsuki Shu if ya didn’t already know. What was your name again?”

Before Tsumugi could take Mika’s hand or offer his own name in response, Shu returned, confirming that they had also received the wrong order and Mika had to help him switch the boxes over. Afterwards, he explained that there wasn’t much either of them could do to repay Tsumugi or to help him transport the second box home (though Shu did imply that the suppliers were about to receive a very strongly worded phone call).

“Aww, Oshi-san I feel bad. Can’t we at least get him some tea or somethin’ to say thanks?” Shu seemed irritated, but glanced over at the box.

“Fine, fine. I won’t come with you, though. Don’t take too long, Kagehira.”

Without even giving Tsumugi the opportunity to decline, Mika had dragged him to a nearby café.

Ordinarily, most of Tsumugi’s day to day conversations tended to be between him and whichever hat he had been working on so talking with Mika had been a welcome change, even if it was only about a few mundane things. Mika explained that Shu had only opened the boutique recently after working as a private tailor under his family’s name. He had taken Mika on as an apprentice a few months prior and then invited him to help, which Mika had been ecstatic to agree with. Apparently Shu held a heavy distaste for most modern fashion, describing it as ‘uninspired and repetitive’. Tsumugi wasn’t so sure he agreed, although, from what he had seen in the shop window (and from Mika’s outfit which he’d excitedly told Tsumugi had been custom made), Shu’s work was certainly unique. He had a distinctive and refined sense of style, which Tsumugi was sure would attract many new customers.

And it had. 

Tsumugi had thought that his interactions with Shu and Mika would be few after that, but a few days later he received a letter. It was from Mika, detailing how he had taken the hat shop’s address from the box of materials and was hoping they could stay in contact.

“ _Truth is, I don’t know that many people here and talking to you was fun so I was wondering if you wanted to be friends,”_ He had written _._ Talking to Tsumugi was fun? He wasn’t sure where Mika had gotten that from but if he really wanted to keep in contact, how could Tsumugi refuse? Luckily, Mika had given Tsumugi an address to write back to and he had sent a reply as soon as he had the free time to write one.

From there, Mika and Tsumugi hadn’t stopped writing letters back and forth, although the time it took between each letter varied as both were working hard. With that, letters evolved into occasional meetups.

Tsumugi found himself starting to feel more and more comfortable talking to Mika. They still mostly talked about work with each other, Tsumugi going into detail about a new design he had made or Mika bringing up the seemingly never ending progress the boutique was making, but it was all Tsumugi really had to say much about anyway. He was happy to be able to take interest in someone else’s life and for them to take interest in his.

Since then, the boutique seemed to have become incredibly popular. They specialised in children’s clothing and made a couple of dresses on the side, luckily, and didn’t seem to be detracting any business from the hat shop. It did, however, lead to many customers asking Tsumugi to make adjustments to his hats to better match the newer style of outfits, which had led to a couple of sleepless nights as he tried to hunt down matching accessories and then learn how best to attach them.

Regardless of this though, Shu still seemed to see Tsumugi as competition. Or maybe he just really didn’t like him. It was hard to tell.

“ ‘S everything okay with you, Tsumugi? Ya look shaken up. Oshi-san didn’t scare ya, did he?”

“Ah, no, it’s just..” Tsumugi trailed off. He didn’t know whether Mika would believe what had happened but Mika was still his only friend. If he was going to tell anybody what he’d just experienced, it would have to be him.

Swallowing his resolve, Tsumugi recounted the events he’d just experienced, from getting lost to the stranger completely disappearing from the balcony. He carefully avoided explaining how his heart had raced at the feeling of literally walking on air or how warm their hands had been in his, but he did his best to recount everything else clearly. As Tsumugi spoke, Mika’s eyes widened.

“No way. Naru-chan was tellin’ me about some wizard the other day. She said there was a rumour about ‘im stealing hearts from random people and she said t’ look out for hair just like that. Oshi-san said she’d probably just heard silly gossip so I wasn’t sure if she had gotten it wrong or somethin’. But if you’ve met ‘im it must be true.”

“A wizard? I never thought I’d meet one of those.” That was certainly interesting, at least. 

“Yer not shocked? How d’ya know he wasn’t tryin’ to eat yer heart or somethin’?”

“It doesn’t really matter, if he’s only stealing hearts.” Tsumugi smiled. “Mine must be defective anyway so I don’t think he’d want it.”

“Really? How could somethin’ like a heart be defective? It’s still beating inside of ya, isn’t it?” Of course it was. If Mika had reached his hand across the table and tried to feel for it, there was an organ pumping blood in Tsumugi’s chest. But wasn’t a heart supposed to be more than that? He didn’t necessarily feel incomplete, but whenever Tsumugi had gotten close to people in the past, they’d noticed.

_“You're creepy as always... What, you experienced so many bad things that there's nothing left of you to hurt? Bein' unable to feel even pain is the same as bein' dead, y'know.”_  


Mika didn’t seem to care whether Tsumugi was missing something or not, but they had still only known each other for a matter of months. If it was going to be brought up eventually, Tsumugi at least didn’t want it to be now.

“I suppose it’s for the wizard to decide which hearts are worth stealing.” He chuckled softly as he brought the conversation back on track. “Do you think Narukami knows anything else?”

Mika shrugged.

“I can ask her for ya next time I see her. But I’m sure she’d love to hear about you meetin’ him too so maybe you should go see her yourself?” That didn’t seem too surprising. Tsumugi had never met Arashi in person, but Mika spoke of her often and apparently she took great interest in current affairs and gossip and liked to relay that information to Mika. “Oh yeah. I told her about how ya read my horoscope the other day and she was wonderin’ if ya would do hers too? She offered to pay for it and everything.” 

Ah, right. Tsumugi had recently tried out reading horoscopes in his free time. He’d happened to come across a book about it while out shopping for extra materials. It hadn’t seemed very realistic, but he’d taken inspiration from a few pages out of curiosity and tried asking Mika about his birthdate and such just to see what would happen. He hadn’t expected it to work out at all, but apparently his prediction about Mika having ‘good luck handling something scary’ had been useful (apparently it had related to Shu somehow) and Mika had encouraged him to pursue it a little more.

“Alright then. Will you tell her I want to meet her?”

“Yeah sure.” Mika’s eyes lit up. “I hope ya get on with each other, yer my best friends after all.” He paused. “Apart from Oshi-san but you’ve already met him.” _Best friend_? That was something Tsumugi would have to unpack later but it made him happy to hear somehow.

“By the way, did I tell ya that Naru-chan and Oshi-san had an argument the other day? It was kinda funny but I felt bad because I don’t think he really knows how to talk t’ her.” As Mika animatedly recounted what happened, Tsumugi once again found himself grateful that they were friends at all.

After maybe half an hour, they paid for their tea and Tsumugi walked Mika back to the boutique before making his own way home. Luckily, the celebrations outside had died down so he didn’t have to consider any short cuts.

The shop was still closed for the day, but Tsumugi had hats to work on when he got back.

The one from earlier that afternoon lay still in place on the mannequin, half-attached ribbon drooping down and exposing the stitching. He looked at it again from where he stood, wondering whether it really would be best to start over.

No. He was glad he hadn’t made any rash decisions before he’d given it time. Maybe a couple of red accents would brighten it up a bit. Just as he placed the hat down on the table, the bell at the door of the shop rung.

 _Odd_. He was sure he had locked the door when he had come in. Well. It wasn’t likely that any dangerous intruder would enter through the front door. Since Tsumugi was the only one in the shop, he didn’t really have an option other than to see what had happened.

Oh. The ‘intruder’ looked up from the hat they had been inspecting with very little interest. It was only a customer; they must have just not realised that the shop was no longer open.

“I’m sorry but you’ll have to come back tomorrow. We’ve been closed for a few hours now.”

“The door was open, though?” Tsumugi gritted his teeth a little. The customer smiled, insincere as if trying to test his patience. And it looked like he couldn’t afford to lose it if their perfectly styled blonde hair and finely tailored clothing were anything to go by. It didn’t mean Tsumugi would be willing to make an exception before morning, though.

“I must have left it unlocked by mistake. I’m very sorry if you feel misled but-”

“These hats really are drab, aren’t they? I would have expected something more vibrant and yet from this, anyone would think you’re only capable of repeating dull patterns and giving them a few embellishments. Is that really the best you can do?” They reach for a newer hat, maroon with a black ribbon and golden cogs attached; clearly supposed to resemble one of Shu’s designs. “Just copying the same old things you know people will like is boring, isn’t it?”

Tsumugi doesn’t want to snap. He knows he shouldn’t and he would regret it if he lost a potentially high paying customer but he was so exhausted that he couldn’t help the frustration seeping into his voice.

“If your only reason for coming in here was to give unwanted criticism then maybe-”

“ _Aoba Tsumugi_.” A chill went down his spine as the customer spoke his name. It wasn’t that unusual for them to have known it, many people who visited the shop did, but the unnaturally even way they spoke made them sound oddly authoritative, even while they were the one intruding. 

Once they were sure Tsumugi’s attention was fully focused on them, they made a strange gesture with their hand as he just watched, bewildered. “I’m not completely sure of what you’re trying to accomplish, but it’s bothersome. I don’t want you to get in my way. Consider this a warning.”

The smile didn’t leave their face as, for the first time, made eye contact. For a moment, Tsumugi felt his entire body go cold. The customer’s eyes were an icy shade of blue and something seemed to spark within them.

“What…” _What was that?_ He wanted to ask, but his voice sounded strange and talking took more effort than it should.

“By the way,” The customer was back by the door, apparently about to show themselves out without bothering to acknowledge Tsumugi’s attempt at a question. They didn’t turn to look at him but Tsumugi could have sworn he could tell they were smirking to themselves. “The best thing about that spell is that you can’t tell anyone that you’re under it. Say hi to Sakasaki for me, will you?”

  


* * *

  


“Shishou promised he wouldn’t be out for long.” The moment Natsume opened the door, he was greeted with a pout. 

“I Know. I’m Sorry, I just had to deal with Something.” He reached forward and ruffled the boy’s hair.

“Shishou’s colour is different. Did something happen?” 

“I met someone Strange, but No. Dealing with Tenshouin is starting to get annoying Though.” Natsume sighed. He really was tired. “Did anything happen while I was Out, Sora?”

“Nope! The telephone rang but Sora didn’t answer it.”

“Ah. I’ll have to call Shu-niisan later Then, in case it was him Again. He worries far too much for his own Good.” Sora seemed to be watching Natsume carefully as he shrugged off his jacket and hung it up on the coat rack. “What happened to that spell I gave you to work On?” Sora flashed a huge smile at this, proudly pulling out a sheet of parchment paper covered in dense writing.

“Sora’s almost figured it out. The last part is just a bit tricky.”

“Good Boy. I’ll leave you to it Then.” It had already been a while since Sora had begun learning magic from Natsume and he clearly had a high aptitude for it. He was confident that he wouldn’t need to support Sora with the spell.

As soon as Natsume reached his room, he shut his eyes and leant against the closed door. Constantly having to avoid being caught was exhausting but he refused to allow it to interfere too much with the rest of his life. Still. Maybe he should avoid going into that part of town for a while. 

He found himself wondering about the stranger he had met. Hopefully they would just be ignored but Natsume had no way of checking what had happened, especially if he wasn’t going to go back into town for a while. He considered asking Shu if he’d had any blue-haired customers since it was his boutique he had dropped them off at, but asking Shu just about anything was an ordeal in itself and likely more trouble than it was worth. Oh well. Maybe it was for the best.

Natsume was sure that if they really were fated to cross paths again, they would.


End file.
